ChickenGuard founder Ben Braithwaite
ChickenGuard has revealed sales growth of its automatic chicken coop doors of 41% by volume for the year to date.
The increase is attributed to the company’s expanding network of trading partners around the world. It has sold online to chicken owners in 49 countries, with trade partners established in only 21 of those countries – so potential for continued growth remains huge.
Founder of ChickenGuard Ben Braithwaite said: “I’m delighted to report a strong performance in the first half of 2019. This truly remarkable growth demonstrates the incredible appetite out there for chicken ownership.
“In the UK alone, there are now over one million chicken owning homes and over 60 million globally, so it is truly encouraging to be supporting a growing community with peace of mind by keeping their beloved flocks safe and ensuring they don’t have to get up at the crack of dawn.”
To date, 2019 has proved to be an ‘extremely successful’ year for ChickenGuard; earlier this year, the organisation was awarded a Queen’s Award for International Trade for Outstanding Short-Term Growth.
EXPANDING
In the last three years, overseas sales have grown by 180% and the proportion of sales exported has increased to over 80% of total sales. This is thanks to a focus on established chicken-owning markets, such as France and Belgium; the rapidly-expanding US market, where 8% of homes are now keeping backyard chickens; and the heartland of the UK. The business has identified Western Europe, Scandinavia, North America and Australasia as key areas of focus.
Ben concluded: “Following this strong start to the year, we remain confident in our full-year guidance and delivery of our planned investments to support our global ambition.”
The idea behind ChickenGuard came 10 years ago, when Ben was given a flock of chickens by his mother. Unfortunately, lack of experience led to a few hens going to chicken heaven thanks to a cunning fox. Determined to find a better solution to keep his hens safely tucked away at night and let out in the morning, he created his first automated chicken coop door opener.
All ChickenGuard units are made in the UK at the company’s headquarters in Cambridge.
